Tianhai City, Huaxia.
It was the sweltering heat of August. Even at seven or eight in the evening, the temperature remained stubbornly high. Chen Xuan had just finished working overtime and, unable to wait a moment longer, hopped onto his small electric scooter and rushed toward Tianhai University.
He was a senior at Tianhai University who had only recently started his internship. He had an appointment to meet his girlfriend, Xu Jing, at one of the school’s plazas that night. Despite the exhaustion from working overtime and the sweat drenching him the moment he stepped out of the office, Chen Xuan felt a surge of warmth at the thought of his girlfriend.
It was Xu Jing’s birthday, and Chen Xuan intended to give her a surprise.
The sun had just dipped below the horizon. The university plaza was already filled with students walking in twos and threes, the air alive with the sound of laughter and chatter. Chen Xuan rode his scooter to the designated spot, but the moment he parked, he froze.
Xu Jing was locked in an embrace with a stranger, the two of them laughing and flirting. Beside them sat a black BMW.
"Xu Jing, what is going on here?" Chen Xuan asked, struggling to suppress his anger as he looked at the expression of fawning adoration on his girlfriend’s face.
"Chen Xuan, you’re just in time," Xu Jing replied, her tone natural and devoid of any shame. "I asked you to meet me here today to make things clear: let’s break up."
"What?"
Xu Jing’s words were like a bolt from the blue, leaving Chen Xuan’s mind blank for a moment. After a few seconds, he drew a deep breath and asked through gritted teeth, "Why? Xu Jing, give me a reason!"
"Are you stupid? Xu Jing is with me now, so she’s dumped a loser like you. Are you blind?" the stranger, who had kept his arm around Xu Jing the whole time, spoke up with a look of utter disdain.
The young man looked to be about the same age as Chen Xuan, but he was dressed in high-end designer labels. Compared to Chen Xuan’s budget clothes, it was like the difference between heaven and earth. The man spoke loudly, immediately drawing curious onlookers.
Some of the students recognized the man: "It’s Ou Yunfeng, Young Master Ou!"
This rich second-generation student, Ou Yunfeng, was a well-known figure at Tianhai University, notorious for being a playboy. It was said he had gone through countless girlfriends, but because his family was wealthy, there was never a shortage of women throwing themselves at him.
Chen Xuan had heard rumors about Ou Yunfeng. He never imagined that his girlfriend, whom he had always viewed as pure, would end up with a person like this. How could he accept this?
"Xu Jing, I want to hear the explanation from your own lips! I don’t believe you’re that kind of woman!" Chen Xuan’s eyes were bloodshot, his voice almost a roar.
"What kind of woman? Chen Xuan, look at your own pathetic, poverty-stricken appearance. Do you really have the nerve to look down on others?" Xu Jing sneered, her eyes filled with contempt. "You spend every day riding a beat-up scooter, making three thousand yuan a month at your internship. You can’t even afford my cosmetics. Ask yourself, can you even afford to support me?"
Every word from Xu Jing felt like a knife cutting into Chen Xuan’s heart. The cold, scrutinizing stares of the surrounding students made his face burn; inside, he felt as if he were bleeding out.
"Xu Jing, do you know? For your birthday, I saved up my entire internship salary to buy you the new phone you’d been wanting, just to surprise you. You told me before that it didn’t matter if my starting salary was low—why are you treating me like this today?" Chen Xuan’s hands trembled as he pulled a brand-new Android phone from his backpack.
"Hahahaha!" Seeing the phone, Ou Yunfeng burst out laughing. "You have to save up for ages just to afford a 'loser' phone like that. A piece of trash like you thinks he’s worthy of being with Xu Jing? What a waste of a beautiful woman!"
Chen Xuan endured Ou Yunfeng’s mockery, his eyes fixed solely on Xu Jing. But the next moment, his gaze dimmed, for he saw that Xu Jing was holding the latest model of iPhone. This one phone alone cost more than three months of his salary, even if he didn't eat or drink a thing.
"You knew it was my birthday, yet you could only buy me this cheap phone. How am I supposed to be seen in public with that?" Xu Jing deliberately waved the iPhone in her hand, the disgust in her eyes intensifying. "Look at Brother Feng. Not only did he buy me the latest iPhone, he also took me to buy a dozen sets of designer clothes. Can you do that?"
Chen Xuan followed her gaze and saw the backseat of Ou Yunfeng’s BMW filled with high-end shopping bags. The expensive designer clothes and the million-yuan luxury car stood in stark contrast to his own bargain-bin clothes and his old, secondhand electric scooter.
"Xu Jing, you didn't used to be this kind of person..." Chen Xuan murmured, feeling a sudden, profound sense of powerlessness.
Their three-year journey of love, from their small-town high school to Tianhai University—the promises they had made to fight and struggle together and never leave each other's side—still echoed in his mind. He couldn't reconcile those memories with the gold-digger standing before him.
"I was short-sighted before, that’s why I was with you. But I’ve realized now—I’m beautiful, so why should I waste my youth tied to a poor boy like you? Only by being with someone capable like Brother Feng can I find happiness! Chen Xuan, be realistic; we aren't compatible!"
Hearing this, Chen Xuan’s heart sank completely. The girl in front of him, with her heavy foundation and miniskirt, was no longer the pure girlfriend he had once known.
"Well? Why aren't you getting lost? A toad shouldn't dream of eating swan meat. I’m warning you, don’t bother Jingjing again, or don’t blame me for being impolite!" Ou Yunfeng said smugly, then kissed Xu Jing on the cheek, as if declaring his victory.
The surrounding students cast sympathetic looks at Chen Xuan, as if looking at a pathetic worm. They all knew how ruthless Ou Yunfeng was; once, a student had tried to argue with him after he stole his girlfriend, only to be beaten up by hired thugs and forced to suffer in silence.
Taking a deep breath, Chen Xuan’s gaze turned cold. He said, in a calm tone, "Xu Jing, I hope you won't regret today's decision."
Xu Jing was surprised; she had expected Chen Xuan to act like a desperate dog, begging her not to break up, thinking he would never find someone as beautiful as her again. She hadn't expected him to be so decisive, let alone issue a threat.
"Regret? Why would I regret it?" After her initial surprise, she offered a mocking laugh. "People like you are destined to be nobodies. If I hadn't broken up with you, I would have been the one to regret it for the rest of my life!"
"Haha, everyone knows how to make empty threats! Chen Xuan, I’ve seen plenty of people like you—a hick with no connections dreaming of a comeback? Stop ignoring him, Jingjing. Let's go; I'm taking you to get a room. Haha!"
Ou Yunfeng mocked him one last time, then he and Xu Jing got into the BMW and drove off.
Ignoring the strange looks from the crowd, Chen Xuan returned to his dormitory, utterly distraught. That night, he drank until he lost his senses, and his roommates eventually had to help him into bed, where he fell into a deep, hazy sleep.
He didn't know how much time had passed, but in his confusion, he felt a wave of warmth radiating from his chest, where he wore an ancient family heirloom jade piece he had carried since childhood.
The jade grew hotter and hotter, and Chen Xuan’s consciousness grew clearer. Suddenly, his mind roared, and a voice only he could hear rang out.
"Junior Chen Xuan, receive my inheritance as the Evil Doctor!"
With that mysterious, archaic voice, an immense wealth of medical knowledge flooded into Chen Xuan’s mind: the ancient and miraculous needle techniques of the Evil Doctor, the "Evil Doctor Divine Eye" that could see through all things... These medical arts poured in, quickly integrating with his memories as if they had been there since birth.
"My medical path can bridge the way of heaven. Cultivate diligently, and the benefits will be infinite!"
The mysterious voice continued to reverberate as the jade on his chest turned scalding hot. Had Chen Xuan opened his eyes, he would have been shocked to see that the heirloom was melting!
The jade dissolved into a powerful, dense stream of energy that fused into his body, slowly flowing through his limbs and bones. His muscles and skeletal structure were tempered by this energy, gradually becoming stronger. His physical flaws and old scars were repaired one by one until he was flawless.
"By receiving my immortal qi, you are now beyond the mundane. Do not disgrace the name of the peerless Evil Doctor!"
The voice stopped abruptly. Chen Xuan felt relaxed, experiencing an indescribable sense of comfort, and soon fell back into a deep sleep.
"Chen Xuan, wake up! You're going to be late for work!"
A familiar voice woke him. Chen Xuan opened his eyes to see sunlight streaming through the window. Standing by his bed was a simple, slightly dark-skinned boy shaking his shoulder. It was his best friend from university, Huang Song, whose timid personality often earned him the nickname "Huang the Coward."
"Ah Song, what time is it?" Chen Xuan asked hurriedly.
"Almost eight."
Chen Xuan jumped out of bed immediately. He had just suffered a breakup, and he didn't want to lose his job because of lateness. The sadistic manager of his department required everyone to arrive half an hour early—before 8:30 a.m.—or he would surely fire them. He had complained to Huang Song about this before, which was why his friend was urging him to wake up.
"Huh?" Chen Xuan suddenly recalled something and reached toward his chest.
"Was last night's dream real?"
The ancient jade he had worn for years had completely disappeared. Despite drinking heavily the night before, he felt no fatigue. His mind was incredibly clear, and his body was filled with boundless vitality.
An irrepressible excitement surged in his heart. He truly felt different.
"The inheritance of the Evil Doctor... it's actually real. With such a miraculous skill, why should I be sad over a hypocritical, gold-digging woman? Xu Jing, I will soon prove that your decision was a mistake!"
At that moment, Chen Xuan felt truly liberated.
Watching Chen Xuan, who was lost in thought, Huang Song couldn't help but look at him with sympathy, assuming his friend was still dazed from heartbreak. But Chen Xuan quickly snapped back to reality, gave Huang Song a relaxed smile, and got ready for work.